Michael Shannon To Duet With Jessica Chastain In Musical Biopic George & Tammy

Michael Shannon will be joining the cast of "George & Tammy," according to Deadline. The limited series is set to be directed by John Hillcoat ("The Road") and will star Jessica Chastain as yet another character named Tammy. She just starred in "The Eyes of Tammy Faye," which is getting lots of awards buzz. The two actors will play country and western musical stars George Jones and Tammy Wynette. There will be six episodes in the series, which is based on the book "The Three of Us: Grown Up with Tammy and George," by Georgette Jones, the couple's daughter. 

"George & Tammy" will shoot in North Carolina starting on Wednesday, December 15, 2021. The site reports that Michael Shannon will be singing the role, just as Jessica Chastain will. The limited series will premiere on Spectrum, and at a later date on Paramount+ and the Paramount Network. 

The creator and executive producer for "George & Tammy" is Abe Sylvia of "Dead to Me" fame. Also executive producing are Andrew Lazar, Josh Brolin, and Jessica Chastain, with 101 Studios' David C. Glasser, David Hutkin, Ron Burkle, and Bob Yari, with writer and executive producer Bryan Goluboff. 

Tammy Wynette is best known for her song "Stand by Your Man," and was called the "First Lady of Country Music." She had 21 songs on the Billboard Country Chart and is considered one of the women who changed country music. Wynette was married to Jones for six years, but the marriage was troubled by Jones' drinking. Their divorce happened in 1975, but they continued to record music together for years afterward. Wynette was married five times.

George Jones is best known for his song, "He Stopped Loving Her Today." He gained the nickname "No Show Jones" because of frequent absences from performances due to drinking. He was referred to as "The Rolls Royce Of Country Music," and had over 160 chart singles in his career. Jones was married four times. 

This series, from the sound of it, has a "Walk the Line" vibe, which starred Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon starring as Johnny Cash and June Carter respectively. 

Shannon has appeared in the films "Knives Out" and "The Shape of Water," and has a brilliant cameo in the Christmas movie, "The Night Before." He recently starred in the Hulu TV series "Nine Perfect Strangers" with Nicole Kidman.